Fire-escape.



F. NMETH.

FIRE ESCAPE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE l, 1914.

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Patented Oct. 27, 1914.

F1 gl #wr/e FRANK NIVIETH, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

FIRE-ESCAIE.

Limone.

Specification of Letters latent.

Patented Oct. 27, 191.41.

Appncanon feed Jane s, 1914. seriai No. 843,521.

To all whom, it may concern Be 1t known that I, FRANK Nl-LMETH, a

i citizen of the United States, residing at Sti Louis, State ot' Missouri, have invented certain new and usei'ul Improvements in Fire- Escapes, o'f which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accomlmnying drawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention has relation to improvements in tire-escapes; and it consists in the novel features of construction more fully set 'forth in the specification and pointed out in the claim. V

In the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation ot a building showing my invention applied thereto; `Fig` 2 is a vertical section (enlarged) on the line 2--2 of Fig. l, the wall of the building and appurtenances thereto being broken at different points; Fig. '3 is a vertical transverse section through the cage or elevator and building wall on the line 3-3 of Fig. l; Fig. 4 is a horizontal sec-l tional detail on the line L -4 of Fig. l; and Fig. 5 is a plan of a portion of the floor ot' the cage or car showing the trap door in said floor. i The present invention is specially directed to ire-escapeswhich assume the form of ltraveling cages, ears or elevators disposed on the outside of a building, the objects here:

sought being to provide a cage or car which` will be fire-proof; one which is provided with means of lngress from a burning bu1ldlng, and with means affording ready escape from the car.

A further object is to provide means for protecting the car from the elements when not in actual service; to provide a car which is under perfect control of the operator; one protecting its occupants against the inrush of flames 'from a burning building; and one possessing further and other ad vantages better apparent from a detailed description of the invention, which is as follows:

Referring to the drawings, B, represents an ordinary building provided with windows WV at different floors, the wall of the building being capped or surmounted with lan overhanging ledge or cornice L as shown. Adapted to travel vertically along the wall of the building, and of a length sufficient to span two or more windows horizontally, is a cage or car C hav ing rea r and end walls, there being no front wall, but in lieu of such front wall there is an abbreviated wall or balustrade z. to afford protection to the passengers against accidental falling out of the car, but being sufficiently low t0 permit the occupants to step over the saine and make a quick escape once the car is lowered to the ground. The rear and side walls ol the ca r and the root' are lined with. asbestos a, the rear wall being provided with openings O positioned to come opposite the windows lV as the car passes in front o'l the windows, the car being equipped with as* bestos roller curtains D which may be drawn across the openings O to protect the oecupants of the car from the llames issuing through the windows at diii'erent floors.

The car is suspended from cables l, tas tened at each end, said cables passing over sheaves 2 at the top of the building, the sheaves being protected by casings 3 through which the cables are free to play, the sheave being mounted in the lower forked end of a hanger or suspension bolt 4. The opposite ends o'l" the cables carry counter-weights 5 properly guided in a vertical chute or conduit t3 formed by the side structural inembers or Z-bars 7, 7, and division wall 8,- a sec ond adjacent conduit 6 being formed on the opposite side of the wall 8. ln this second and outer conduit G are adapted to travel the anti-friction rollers D, i), mounted on the upper and lower brackets or tongues l0 secured to the car, the tongues 10 being free to traverse the vertical slot s formed between the adjacent -ci'lges of the outer legs of the 'Z- bars 7 (Fig. 4). The Zs are secured to the building in any way known to the art, or they may enter into the construction oi. the building when the latter is first erected.` The opposite ends ot' the car are provided with angle brackets 11, the outer legs of the brackets 'forming tongues traversing the vertical slot s oit a conduit or tube 12 scoured to the building wall by braces 13 or otherwise, the said brarlwt-legs having secured thereto the hoisting cables 14, said cables passing over rollers l5 mounted in the lower forked ends of the hangers or suspension bolts 1G, the fixed or anrhored ends of the bolts 11, 1G, being protected by a cover plate or cap 17. The rollers 15 are nositioned at the upper end ot' the conduit 1Q and ari` protected from the elements by a casing 3, the cable 1li after passing over the roller descending through the ronduit l! and emerging below the `ground iloor of the building, where it descends and iscaused to wind over a winding roller or drum 18. The shaft 19 of the drum (supported in any way known to the art) terminates at o ne end in a bevel pinion 20 which meshes with a corresponding pinion 21 at the adjacent end of a drive-shaft 22, the latter being 'driven in either direction by an electric or other form or motor M The fioor of the car is provided with a hinged tra-p door. 23 adjacent to which'is mounted a handioperated windlass 24, the cable 25 of which is used forraisin4 and lowering boxes or equivalent receptac es R, for the purposes of lowering an occupant of the car if necessary, or for lowering such box to obtain tools or other para hernalia to be lifted into the car,\with,out t e necessity of lowering the car itself. The edge of the door 23 has a'recess or notch n cut therefrom to allow the cable 25 .to pass through, the door being lifted automatically by the ascending bucket R as quite obvious from the drawings. A

E, represents a fire engine and H, a line of hose run up to the car.

The cables 14 wind over their respective drums 18, so as to wind on or unwind therefrom at the same time, the drums always r0- tating simultaneously in opposite directions.

l/Vhcn not in service, the car C'is lifted under' the ledge L where it is protected from the elements. In case of fire, thecar is lowered until it comes opposite a series of windows through which access may be had. into the car, and, as a precaution the asbestos curtains D are drawn so as to prevent flames shooting into the car as it passes in front of windows from which dame is issuing.

When the car is finally lowered, the occu pants can step overy the fence or balustrade It and make their escape. The car may then be again ralsed totake on more pas' sengers. Should it be ldesirable to secure tools of any description after a lcar is once raised, an operator lor occupant in the car may quickly lower the box or bucket R to the ground, and after the tools have been deposited therein, the receptacle R may -be' .quickly raised,l when the tools may be putl to their' legitimat'evuse. As for example an ax may be raised to permit chopping away of windows, and the like,

' Withmypresent escape, a burning buildingimay .bejemptied in'a minimum space of time.V

Having described my invention, I claim lln combination with a building wall, vertically disposed pairs of contiguous conduits located 'along one of the walls'o'f the building, a car or cage, a sheave at the upperend of one ofthe conduits of each pair, acounter or balance weight traversing said conduit, a cable leading from the car over each sheave and secured to the weight, a vertical slot being-1 formed. in the wall of the' adjacent conduit of'each pair, tongues leading from the 'car through said slots, rollers on the tongues traversing' said slotted conduit,

hoisting cables for the car, rollers over which said cables pass, a vertically slottedl FRANK NMETH.

l/Vitnesses EMIL` STAREK, Jos. A. MICHEL.

Copies of this patent :may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Fatents,

. Washington, D. C. 4 

